Life Ain't Always Beautiful

A girlfriend of mine said goodbye today.

Not only to a relationship but to a dream. Her relationship with her boyfriend of several years ended after months of unraveling.

It’s over.

They didn’t share an address but after two years together, they didn’t just entwine their hearts but their possessions too. Tonight, she went to his place to gather them up.

And take them home.

I came to her house to help her unload her hopes and dreams.

The night is cold and the deep snow surrounds her driveway like a fortress. We work silently.

The only sound is occasional sniffing.

Clothing and coats. Movies and books. Stemware and silverware. Mundane items that over the course of several months migrated from her house to his. She grabs a bag of shoes. I wrestle with a suitcase of cement.

Bump.

Bump.

Bump.

I pull the weighty cargo up the steps.

Heartbreak is heavy.

When all of it is piled safely in her house in scattered disarray we lean against the kitchen counter and say little. Her nose is red.

“Have a glass of wine. Get some sleep,” I say as I hug the fragile shoulders that sag under the weight of this newly defined reality.

“I will,” she whispers, “I will.”

I hesitantly leave to go back home to my children. I hate to, but I don’t have a choice. "Call me later, honey."

“Thank you, Audra,” she says in a small voice as I start down the stairs to the back door, looking over my shoulder one last time. I try to stay strong but it's too much. My tears betray me.

Because there is my dear, beautiful, funny, and intelligent friend.

Crying in her kitchen.

With bags and boxes of a lost future.

Piled at her feet.
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Life ain't always beautiful
Sometimes it's just plain hard
Life can knock you down, it can break your heart

Life ain't always beautiful
You think you're on your way
And it's just a dead end road at the end of the day

But the struggle makes you stronger
And the changes make you wise
And happiness has it's own way of takin' it sweet time

No,life aint always beautiful
Tears will fall sometimes
Life aint always beautiful
But it's a beautiful ride

What a beautiful ride
~Lyrics by Gary Allan

Love you, my friend . . . ~Audra